Publications, Articles and Reports
2011
Recent Publications
The story of the Asha Society, a highly effective 23-year-old slum development organisation in Delhi
The Nossal has recently launched a monograph that assessed the model and impact of the Asha Society, a slum development NGO that covers 400 000 in Delhi. Funding for the project (2010-11) was provided by the Australia India Institute and the Nossal Institute. A Nossal team undertook several visits to Delhi to conduct scores of interviews, group discussions, observations, and statistical review of change over time on selected health and development indicators in slums where Asha has worked. Analysis showed much better health status, school enrolment and financial inclusion than in Delhi as a whole, despite the stark poverty of these areas. The monograph was released on 13 October 2011 at the Nossal Institute’s Seminar on Inclusive Development [http://www.ni.unimelb.edu.au/about_us/news_and_events/events]. Asha’s Founder and Director, Dr Kiran Martin, spoke at the seminar about her work spanning more than two decades. www.asha-india.orgPlease click here for link to monograph, Asha: Hope and Transformation in the Slums of Delhi
A photo-book on women who inject drugs in Vietnam
A collaborative study looking at the health risks and needs of women who inject drugs in Vietnam, funded by an Australian Development Research Award (supported by AusAID), has completed data collection. The study involved the Nossal Institute in collaboration with Institute for Social Development Studies and Center for Supporting Community Development Initiatives (Hanoi) and an independent researcher in Ho Chi Minh City. http://www.ni.unimelb.edu.au/inclusive_development/gender_responsive_development/ausaid_adra_grant
The study’s first major output is a photo-book documenting key findings, along with images and voices of women who have injected and agreed to talk about their challenges and hopes. The photos were taken by a renowned Hanoi-based photo-journalist, Pham Hoai Thanh, who has previously documented the lives of people living with HIV and injecting drug users (men and women). This bi-lingual publication aims to create better understanding of the life circumstances of a group that is highly stigmatised. It includes concrete recommendations for policy-makers and programmers, including the effectiveness of self-help groups. The book was launched to mark World AIDS Day 2011 both in Hanoi (on 16 Nov at the Hanoi Press Club) and in Melbourne (at a seminar on women and harm reduction in Asia at the Nossal Institute on 30 Nov 2011).
Click here for Women Who Inject Drugs: Beyond the Numbers
Publications on tobacco control
Nossal Institute’s Martha Morrow has collaborated with research partners in Pakistan and Laos on two studies relating to tobacco control. In Pakistan, as in most countries, smoking is concentrated among boys and men, with gender norms a key determinant, even among future doctors. A recent study among doctors in Laos found relatively lower smoking rates than in the general population. In this sample younger doctors smoked less than older ones, an encouraging sign of social change. In both countries, however, clinicians receive little training to assist patients and the community to quit smoking.1) Syed Muhammad Mubeen, Morrow M, Barraclough S. 2011. Medical students' perspectives on gender and smoking: A mixed methodology investigation in Karachi, Pakistan. Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association, 61(8), Aug 2011. [individual copies available on request]
2) Sychareun V, Morrow M, Alongkone P, Visanou H, Sysavanh P, Tomson T. 2011. Smoking among Lao Medical Doctors: Challenges and opportunities for tobacco control. Tobacco Control 2011;20:144e150. doi:10.1136/tc.2009.035196. http://tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/20/2/144.full.pdf
Rob Moodie was a member of the official Australian delegation to the UN High Level Meeting on Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) held in New York in September.
Here Rob Moodie describes the process, outcomes and future challenges for the global prevention and control of NCDs in this commentary in the Medical Journal of Australia.
The slow-motion disaster that is breaking the bank Rob Moodie.
Med J Aust 2011; 195 (9): 508-509.
http://www.mja.com.au/public/issues/195_09_071111/moo11235_fm.html
In the run up to the recent CHOGM meeting in Perth Rob Moodie describes the role of the Commonwealth countries in the global prevention and control of NCDs
"Can CHOGM take the reins in the face of NCD disaster?" by Rob Moodie has been published on The Conversation. Here is the link:
http://theconversation.edu.au/can-chogm-take-the-reins-in-the-face-of-ncd-disaster-3997
Malaria – a research agenda for malaria eradication
Professor Graham Brown is co-author on "malERA – a research agenda for malaria eradication" published in PLoS Medicine January 25, 2011.
Profesor Brown collaborated with a group of 250 experts from 36 countries in 20 malERA meetings around the world which produced a draft research and development agenda that was refined during the malERA "Zenith Week" meeting in Washington D.C., in March, 2010.
“…..The Malaria Eradication Research Agenda (malERA) initiative complements existing research agendas, which are primarily aimed at reducing the global burden of morbidity and mortality due to malaria by malaria control, with a set of research and development priorities that identify knowledge gaps and tools needed for worldwide eradication of malaria. This sponsored Collection of 12 Reviews comprises three reflective pieces and nine research and development agendas that arose from these consultations….” Available online at: http://bit.ly/hCjCCC
Produced with support from the Malaria Eradication Research Agenda (malERA) initiative, which was funded by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Download: Complete Collection (3.8 MB PDF).PDF [101p.] at: http://bit.ly/fvkuJY